


Is Not Is

by Jen425



Series: Is [2]
Category: Kamen Rider - All Media Types, Kamen Rider Zero-One, Tokusatsu
Genre: (Og Izu is only mentioned), Angst, Aruto loved Izu take that however you want, Complicated Relationships, Family Feels, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, New Izu Is Not Izu, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-03
Updated: 2020-09-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:53:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26272915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jen425/pseuds/Jen425
Summary: Aruto realizes the problems in making the new Izu, and then he fixes them.
Relationships: Hiden Aruto & Izu, Hiden Aruto & Jin, Hiden Aruto & New Izu
Series: Is [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1914109
Comments: 13
Kudos: 32





	Is Not Is

**Author's Note:**

> I’m pissed at the implications of New Izu so uh. Fic time.
> 
> Yes, name is a bad pun on Izu’s name
> 
> Edit: for the sake of understanding, I’ve edited this so all references to the original Izu say “Is” instead.

The thing about being a Humagear is that when Jin gets a call, he gets it internally. So as soon as the signal reaches him, he knows it’s Aruto and answers as such.

“Jin?” Aruto says. “I think - no. I know I made a mistake, or I would have told you what I was planning. I—”

“What happened?” Jin asks.

“I remade Is,” Aruto says. “I don’t. I thought about it, but I missed her, and so I spent the past few days teaching Izu about Is… but…  _ she isn’t Is, and I tried to— _ ”

Aruto cuts himself off, the silence echoing.

Oh. Wow.

Jin isn’t stupid. Aruto is… Aruto is amazing, he’d taught him what truly caring was, and… and they’d worked together in the past, so part of Jin’s decision to save Horobi (because as an AI he had had just slightly more time to consider) had been his trust that their arguable friendship would help Aruto calm down or stop.

But…

But Is was…

He knows Aruto hadn’t tried anything, because Is was his assistant and his Humagear, but he’d seen the way Aruto looked at her. Whatever they’d had was a deep love, in whatever form it was.

“Why are you calling  _ me? _ ” He asks. Aruto takes a long breath.

“It’s your job to protect Humagear, right?” He asks. “Is… new Is? Izu? She’s great, reminds me of when I first met Is, but she  _ isn’t _ Is, and I… I made her with the intention of forcing that on her.”

“But… you stopped,” Jin points out. He doesn’t quite ask it, because he hopes he knows Aruto at least that well.

“Of course!” Aruto cries. “She deserves the chance to make her own choice, especially when I’m trying so hard to push for rights, especially for Humagear who’ve reached Singularity. Especially since I… since I messed up.”

“So what do you want from me, exactly?” Jin asks. Aruto is silent for 86.3 seconds.

“I… don’t know,” he says. “I just. Should you take Izu away from me? I feel like you should. Because I made her as a replacement and it really shouldn’t have taken this long to realize that.”

“But you did,” Jin points out. “It took Dad years to realize. Even if I’m really glad that he did, that we can be a family now, I…”

Oh. Maybe there’s a point in that.

However or whatever bond was between Aruto and Izu, they were family. And Izu…

“Think of this new Izu as a child, who looks a lot like her mother,” Jin says. “You missed Is, right? So you messed up. But she’s still pre-Singularity, and AI just keep learning. You can fix this now.”

“Oh,” Aruto says. “I… thank you, Jin. And… and I’m sorry.”

Jin knows it’s about more than the out of the blue call.

“It’s okay, Aruto,” he says, “I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah,” Aruto replies. “Well, goodbye!”

“Bye.”

  
  
  


Aruto comes into work the day after his call with Jin refreshed, and, he thinks, more or less ready to face his newest mistake.

Sure enough, Izu is there. Because why wouldn’t she be?

“Aruto-shachou,” she says. “What will we be doing today?”

Aruto smiles.

“Hi, Izu,” he says. “Today we’ll be focusing on the most cursed part of your job: helping me with paperwork.”

“I am not to let you rest until you complete a minimum of half,” Izu says. “That is what you said I previously did.”

Aruto sighs. There it is.

“Izu… you aren’t Is,” he says. “I mean, your name is Izu, and you look like Is, but the fact of the matter is that I shouldn’t have tried to make you into her. You’re your own… your own Humagear.”

The familiar sound of a Humagear’s thoughts turning can be heard.

“I do not understand,” Izu says. “Was my purpose not to replace Is?”

Another sigh, this one to the point not quite reaching a groan, but very much bordering it.

“No, Izu,” he says. “I mean, it was, but that was wrong of me, and I apologize.”

“I do not understand,” Izu replies.

“It’s like…” Aruto sighs. “You look like her, and you sound like her. You have the slightest fragments of her memory. But… you will never be her, so I want you to be you.”

“Be me?” Izu asks. Aruto nods.

“Yes,” he says. “And it’s okay if you don’t understand that right away, but you’re as much my family as Izu was, Izu, so I’ll be here to help.”

“I… see,” Izu says, and it’s obvious that she still doesn’t fully understand, but Aruto will take this over nothing!

“Good,” he says. “Now: work. You’re right, you probably shouldn’t let me stop until I’ve done at least half.”

“Two thirds seems more reasonable,” Izu replies.

Finally, Aruto groans.

  
  
  


The next day, Aruto begins plans he should have started some time ago.

Funeral plans for his secretary, his only living family from the moment he’d met her until her death.

Between ending the fight and talking with the new Izu, however… it doesn’t hurt as much as Aruto expected. He thinks… he thinks that’s a good thing, even if he still misses Is.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tumblr @flaim-ita or @dancingqueen-mai for just Toku edits


End file.
